Realizations
by Lady Marianne
Summary: Lily realizes what her feelings for James really are. I know, bad title, bad summary. But think about it, the story can't be any worst than this, so check it out! Reviews will be very much appreciated.


**Title sucks, I know. Don't rub it in my face.**

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******Realizations**

_Based on situation originated by J.K. Rowling_

Lily was sitting alone in the Head's common room, thinking. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately.

It was her seventh and last year at school, so she had promised herself that she would make the most of it. That, at the beginning, had meant avoiding James Potter at all cost. She had rejected his every invitation to go out with him and she had even dated other boys… She had done all in her power to avoid him.

But, as the months went by, despising him had become a lot harder. She suddenly found herself laughing at his jokes, talking to him in a friendly way… Merlin, she had even smiled at him once or twice! What was the matter with her?

And the worst part was that whenever he was near her, she seemed to be unable to think clearly. Whenever he shot a charming smile in her direction, she would flush. Whenever he talked to her, she would be lost for words. And whenever he asked her out, she would have to think about it. _Think!_ About going out with James Potter!

Not so long ago, the word 'no' used to come straight to her, even without having to listen to what James told her. The moment she saw him, she would say 'no', without even giving him the chance to ask –not that he wouldn't ask anyway, forcing her to repeat her answer over and over until he would finally give up and leave dragging his feet. But now… Now she actually listened to him. Listen him list the reasons why they would make a great couple together. And when he was done with the list and popped the infamous question of 'Would you go out with me, Evans?' she had to remind herself of the reasons why they would _not_ make a great couple together. And then she would say no, but not before a short pause. A pause that months ago didn't even exist!

She was obviously loosing her mind. She could not be thinking about going out with him. She just couldn't.

Sure, he had changed, she reminded herself. Sure his head had deflated a little. But he was still arrogant and a prat and cocky and…

Lily's breath was caught in her throat when she realized where all the clues were pointing. She did not hate Potter. Perhaps she had, some time ago. But she didn't hate him now. Now she just… She loved him.

Oh, dear Merlin, she loved James Potter!

She sat in silence for another couple of minutes, arguing with herself. She could not love James Potter, and yet she did. She had finally succumbed to the 'Potter's Charm', even when she had spent seven years fighting against it. How was it even possible?, she asked herself. How could she have been so stupid not to notice that she was falling for him?

And then another revelation hit her. James must have known that she liked him. Why else would someone spend seven years asking another someone out, even after being pushed away –sometimes even literally– over a thousand times? Anyone in his place would have given up on her years ago, but not James. He had stayed by her side, even when she had told him to go away. He had never seceded to profess his love for her, even after being jinxed for it. He had never stopped asking her out, even after being rejected every single time. That could mean only one thing: that he loved her too.

Lily lay back on her chair and smiled widely, as the third revelation hit her –one that should've hit her years ago, but that she had somehow blocked–: James Potter loved her too! He loved her so much that he had even tried to change all the things he thought she disliked about him. He had even tried to comb his hair, which had brought terrible consequences, since his hair was better left alone, but still! He had tried. For her. He loved her _that_ much.

She was still smiling stupidly when the doors opened and four boys came in. Lily didn't turn, knowing from their voices who they were. Besides, only her and James could enter that room, since they were both Head Girl and Boy. It was pretty clear that James was back and had brought his friends with him.

They muttered hello to her and started to make their way to their room, apparently too exhausted after a long day of studying and –in their case– detention to stay and chat. Lily, who was still thinking of her recent revelations, let them walk away, not really in the mood to talk.

It wasn't until they were at the foot of the stairs that one of the boys spoke to her, without even turning to her and without even stopping. He just popped the infamous question, like he usually did.

"Would you go out with me, Evans?" James asked, climbing the stairs after his fellow Marauders.

This time, after a very long time, Lily didn't have to think of the answer.

"Okay," she replied, her emerald eyes still fixed on the fire.

"That's what I thought," James commented and continued to walk towards his room.

Lily forced herself out of her thoughts and turned to the stairs, where James's back was no longer visible. She waited in silence for a couple of seconds, knowing that James had probably not yet realized that her answer had not been her usual 'Get lost, Potter'.

And, as matter of fact, that was exactly what had happened.

The boys were so used to Lily and James's dialogue that at the beginning they didn't notice that her answer had changed. It wasn't until Sirius Black had his hand on the doorknob that he realized that something was different.

"Didn't Evans just say…?" he commented, looking at his friends. Peter and Remus looked very bemused, but James was no longer there.

He rushed down the stairs, his friends following him. He found Lily standing in the middle of the common room, eating her nails nervously.

"Could you… Could you say that again?" he asked once he was standing in front of her, slightly out of breath both from the race and the shock. Sirius, Remus and Peter watched them from the stairs.

"I said 'okay'," she replied, not meeting his gaze.

He could not believe his ears. After so many years, she had finally said yes. But he had to be sure she had understood him. Perhaps she had misheard him, or perhaps she was just playing with him… This was almost too good to be true, so he had to be sure before he did something stupid –say, kiss her like he had wanted to kiss her ever since he could remember; or run around the castle, screaming at the top of his lungs that he, James Charlus Potter, was going out on a date with the most perfect girl in the world. He had to check she knew what she was doing first.

"Are you sure?" he repeated.

"Yes. Yes, I'm sure."

"You know what that means, right? If you agree to go out with me, you… Well, you will be going out. With me."

She looked up and him, her emerald eyes finally fixing on his.

"Merlin, Potter, do you _want_ me to say no?" she asked, trying to sound mad. But the truth was that she was smiling like she had never smiled at him before. She looked better that he had given her credit for.

"No, no, of course not," he quickly said, desperately praying she hadn't changed her mind. "I was just checking you knew what you were doing."

She smiled more widely at him. He looked really nervous, which, oddly enough, suited him. He looked really, really cute. She had to fight back the urge to kiss him. She would _not_ take the first step. If he wanted to kiss her… well, she wouldn't say no to that.

"I know what I'm doing," she assured him. "I'm succumbing to the 'Potter Charm'. Wasn't that what you wanted me to do since first year?"

"I did," he replied. Then, smiling nervously he added. "I just never thought you would."

"Well, I did. So, what time will you pick me up?" she asked him.

"I… Seven o'clock tonight?" he muttered.

"Sure. I'll see you later; I have to go talk to Alice," she said. "Bye boys!" she waved at the boys that were on the stairs, still looking intensely at her, and then left.

The moment the doors had closed behind her, James fell to the floor, his knees failing him. His friends slowly made their way towards him.

"Did I just get myself a date with Evans?" James asked, looking up at his friends.

"I think you did," Remus answered, smiling at him. "And I think it's about time you start calling her by her first name."

"I don't believe it. I'm going out with Evans," James whispered.

"Why are you so surprised about it? Haven't you want to go out with Evans for seven years? You've been planning to ask her out ever since you met her," Peter asked him, surprised.

"I did, Peter," James muttered through clutch teeth. "I just never got to the part where she actually said yes."

"Well, Prongs, you better do something. Your 'future wife', as you like to call her, has finally agreed to go out with you and you're sitting here, talking to us. You better do something before she changes her mind!"

"You're right, Padfoot!" James said, jumping to his feet. "I need to make this the most memorable night of her life!" He ran to his room and slammed the door shut. But he reopened it seconds later and looked outside. "I'm sorry, Moony. I know it's a full moon and all, but…"

"You have a date with Evans," Remus completed smiling. "Don't worry. It's okay."

"Are you sure?" James asked. "I mean, I'm not going to cancel my date, but I would hate that you were mad at me…"

"Don't worry, Prongs. Just give me the details tomorrow."

"I sure will."

"And, for Merlin's sake," Sirius added, as he and his two friends made their way out of the common room, leaving James to get ready for his big night, "don't blow it telling her that you've decided to call you first son Harry. She'll freak out."

"Fine, I'll try not to bring that up," James replied laughing. "See you tomorrow!"

Remus, Sirius and Peter exited the room and headed back to their own common room.

"I say he'll blew it. He'll tell her that he has already booked the church where they can get married and she'll freak out," Sirius commented after a few minutes.

"Really?" Peter asked. "I was going to say that he'd blew it by confessing that he was the one who hexed that armour that chased Lily around for a whole day until he 'saved' her."

"Oh, shh it, boys," Remus said smiling. "I have a really good feeling about them. I always knew Lily is the only one for James."

"Are you sure, Moony?" Peter asked, still not convinced.

"For Merlin's sake, Wormtail! The woman made him _comb_!"

"Yeah… Yeah, you may be right. They look good together too, don't they?"

"I think they will make a great couple," Sirius agreed. "That is, provided he makes it out of his room to take her out. I don't think Prongs is emotionally prepared for this. He never dared to imagine that she would say yes. Did you see his face? I had never seen her so scared before in my life," Sirius laughed, as did his friends.

"I still have a good feeling about them," Remus held.

"Who knows… Maybe in a couple of years, we'll even have Harry Potter wandering around the castle at night with his father cloak," Peter commented.

"Let's hope he doesn't mention that tonight," Sirius said.

And the three of them went back to their room to get ready for tonight, all of them wondering what would be of Lily and James. But, deep inside, they knew that they needn't worry. They'd be okay.

THE END

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**I hope you liked this short one-shot. Lily and James had recently become my favourite HP couple -I used to loooove Ron and Hermione, but they have been replaced.**

**I've been trying to write about Lily and James for some time now, and I have started several stories involving the two of them, but I'm suffering from a big writer's block right now, so I don't know if I'll ever get anywhere with them. This, however, popped into my head this afternoon when I was cleaning my room -oddly enough, it's not the first time I've come up with a fanfiction while I cleaned the room; I probably should do it more often and see if that solves my problem regarding my other stories. **

**Let me know what you think, would you? This is my first Lily/James storie and it would be nice to know your opinion.**

**Also, when I finished writing this, I came up with a great way to continue it, but I'm not sure if I'm going to even write it. I'm quite satisfied with the way this came up, so I don't want to ruin it. If, however, you think I should continue it, let me know.**

**Okay, so the author's note is almost longer than the fic itself -so typical of me- so I should be going now. Review, okay? Please, please, please, please... :'( Thanks!!**


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